Arm purse and hand purse



June 15, 1965 R. H. TODD ARM PURSE AND HAND PURSE Filed June 15, 1962 lNVE'NTOR. 5 0.5515? H 7001) United States Patent 3,189,073 ARM PURSE AND HAND PURSE Robert H. Todd, 728 Franklin Ave., Brooklyn 38, N.

Filed June 13, 1962, Ser. No. 202,179 4 Claims. (Cl. 150-35) This invention relates to purses and particularly to purses worn as a piece of clothing.

Purses hung from the body are quite old and date from medieval times. However, such devices were normally hung from the waist swinging freely on long straps. Such purses advanced to a purse carried by a strap across a persons shoulder. As can be readily understood, these arrangements were awkward, and were easy prey for those who wished to rob the wearer. Later arrangements provided straps encircling the wearers waist and hand to which purses were attached. These again were unwieldly and cumbersome.

Many women wear gloves when they leave their homes. Actually, with most habits, a woman is considered incompletely dressed without gloves. Such gloves in most instances have gauntlet portions which extend on to the arm.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide a purse worn as a garment which is carried with facility and safety.

Another object of this invention is to provide a purse worn as a piece of clothing which is not cumbersome.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a purse of the above type which may be carried by a hand strap.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art by referring to the following description and the accompany drawings where- FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a purse being worn as a garment which is made in accordance with the invention,

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the novel purse of FIGURE 1 in open position. I

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the novel purse of FIGURES l and 2 carried by hanging by a strap from the users arm,

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of a novel purse combined with a glove,

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a modification of the purse of FIGURE 4.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIGURE 4, a glove 30 has a gauntlet portion 31 that extends from the wearers Wrist upwardly onto the forearm. A pocket 32 is sewn in the tubular portion 31 that is closed by a slide fastener 33 to provide the wearer with a purse that may be Worn. The glove 30 can be modified as shown in FIGURE 5 wherein pocket 32 has a flap 34 for closure.

FIGURES 1, 2, and 3 show a gauntlet purse which is tubular and has two semi-cylindrical portions 11 and 12 connected by a hinge 13. Each of the semi-cylindrical portions 11 and 12 is made in the usual manner by enclosing or covering a rigid or semi-rigid frame (not shown) of wood, plastic, etc. with an envelope of flexible material such as natural or synthetic fabric, plastic, leather, etc., the pieces of flexible material being interconnected by sewing, as shown, or by any other suitable means. Each semi-cylindrical portion 11 and 12 has a pocket 14 closed by a slide fastener 15 which is arranged on the inside of each semi-cylindrical portion. A mirror 16 is attached to the pocket 14 interiorly of one semicylindrical portion while the pocket 14 of the other semicylindrical portion has a smaller pocket 17 therein, access to which is through slide fastener 15. Midpoints of ice straps 18 at each end of purse 10 areconnected or sewn to the inner surface thereof adjacent the hinge 13 and have a pair of fasteners 19 at each of their ends. Corresponding fasteners 19a are also disposed at the ends of semi-cylindrical portions 11 and 12. The semi-cylindrical portions 11 and 12 each constitutes a cover and will hereinafter be referred to as such.

When purse 10 is worn, straps 18 are wrapped around the wearers arm and one of the fasteners 19 in one of the ends of each strap releasably interlocks with a fastener 19b in its other end for joining the ends of the straps together for holding the purse in position of the wearers arm. The covers 11 and 12 are brought together and encircle the arm, and the other unengaged fasteners 19 on the ends of the straps are then engaged with the fasteners 19a on the covers 11 and 12 to hold the cover secured to the straps. To keep purse 10 closed, one cover has a locking strap 20 with openings 21 for receiving a tongue 22 that is attached to the other cover. Tongue 22 may have an opening to receive a small lock as shown. A small pocket 23 with snap fasteners 23a may be provided on the outside of one of the covers, as shown, for holding a key hung on a lanyard for said lock.

To carry purse 10 in lieu of wearing the same on the forearm, a strap 25, provided with any desired form of hinge 24 at its ends is connected in the usual manner to one of the covers 11 or 12 as shown in FIGURES 2 and 3. When the purse 10 is to be worn, the hinges 24 are preferably pivoted and retracted with strap 25 as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1.

While this invention has been described with particular reference to the construction shown in the drawing, it is to be understood that such is not to be construed as imparting limitations upon the invention, which is best defined by the claims appended hereto.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A tubular purse to be worn on a persons forearm comprising a pair of semi-cylindrical covers, hinge means connecting said covers along adjacent edges thereof, a pocket formed on each cover, each pocket having an access opening on the inside of each cover, a slide fastener for closing each pocket opening, a strap secured intermediate its ends adjacent to each end of said covers and adjacent to said hinge means, said straps being disposed interiorly of said covers and of a length to encircle the persons forearm, fastener means at the ends of each strap for fastening the ends thereof together, fastener means on said straps at each end thereof and on each cover interiorly thereof arranged to co-act when the straps are fastened to the forearm to hold the covers secured to the straps and in closed encircling relation to the forearm; a locking strap secured exteriorly of one cover at the edge thereof opposite to said hinge means arranged to overlap the other cover when said covers are closed, and tongue means on said other cover insertable through a selected one of a plurality of openings provided in said locking strap for receiving a locking means.

2. The tubular purse of claim 1, wherein the access opening of each pocket is located adjacent the edge of its associated cover opposite said hinge means, and an additional pocket provided on at least one of said covers within its pocket and having its access opening disposed interiorly thereof.

3. The tubular purse of claim 2, wherein said locking means is key operated, and a key pocket is provided exteriorly of one of said covers, a key carrying lanyard attached to said cover, the key carried thereby being contained within said key pocket.

4. The tubular purse of claim 1, including a mirror mounted on one of said covers interiorly thereof, and a retractable strap means connected to one of said covers whereby to permit carrying of said tubular purse when removed from said forearm.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Doolittle 224-28 Moss 2170 Fisher 259 Dunham 128133 FOREIGN PATENTS 11/53 France.

FRANKLIN T. GARRETT, Primary Examiner.

THOMAS J. HICKEY, Examiner. 

1. A TUBULAR PURSE TO BE WORN ON A PERSON''S FOREARM COMPRISING A PAIR OF SEMI-CYLINDRICAL COVER, HINGE MEANS CONNECTING SAID COVER ALONG ADJACENT EDGED THEREOF, A POCKET FORMED ON EACH COVER, EACH POCKET HAVING AN ACCESS OPENING ON THE INSIDE OF EACH COVER, A SLIDE FASTENER FOR CLOSING EACH POCKET OPENING, A STRAP SECURED INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS ADJACENT TO EACH END OF SAID COVERS AND ADJACENT TO SAID HINGE MEANS, SAID STRIPS BEING DISPOSED INTERIORLY OF SAID COVERS AND OF A LENGTH TO ENCIRCLE THE PERSON''S FOREARM, FASTENER MEANS AT THE ENDS OF EACH STRAP FOR FASTENING THE ENDS THEREOF TOGETHER, FASTENER MEANS ON SAID STRAPS AT EACH END THEREOF AND ON EACH COVER INTERIORLY THEREOF ARRANGED TO CO-ACT WHEN THE STRAPS ARE FASTENED TO THE FOREARM TO HOLD THE COVERS SECURED TO THE STRAPS AND IN CLOSED ENCIRCLING RELATION TO THE FOREARM; A LOCKING STRAP SECURED EXTERIORLY OF ONE COVER AT THE EDGE THEREOF OPPOSITE TO SAID HINGE MEANS ARRANGED TO OVERLAP THE OTHER COVER WHEN SAID COVR ARE CLOSED, AND TONGUE MEANS ON SAID OTHER COVER INSERTABLE THROUGH A SELECTED ONE OF A PLURALITY OF OPENINGS PROVIDED IN SAID LOCKING STRAP FOR RECEIVING A LOCKING MEANS. 